20 Apr 2009

We are very proud to announce the release of 'Camden Brain Slurry' on our great friends Rocket Records. It is a split 12" release with the wonderful White Hills,who's offering for this slab of vinyl is 'I Will Find Peace of Mind'.

It's the first in a series entitled 'Collisions',this the first volume comes in a limited run of 1000 copies with 300 on orange vinyl and only 150 with a limited numbered art print. It comes in a die cut sleeve and insert with outstanding artwork we have come to expect from Johnny 'O. Unfortunately they managed to get the labels the wrong way round but once you are aware of this it shouldn't impair the aural experience contained within the grooves of this fine item. It is released on Monday 20th April and can be ordered from Cargo Records or purchased from your local Independent Record Shop.

To mark the release we are playing the 'Stoned Hand of Doom' Festival in Rome on Saturday 17th May at INIT. White Hills will also be playing that night as part of their European tour. Tickets are 15euros and are available from shod_tickets@hotmail.it,doors are at 16.00hrs and we will be headlining. Look forward to seeing you there !

14 Apr 2009

The amazing Australian band Grey Daturas are over here for a European tour and are playing two London shows at Café Oto in Dalston on Sunday 19th with ‘Ashtray Navigations’ in support, and then at Bardens Boudoir also in Dalston on Thursday 24th with the very mighty ‘Big Naturals’ supporting.

There may also be a free secret ‘warm-up’ show in Hackney on Saturday (18th) as well...if you are interested contact us by e-mail (via the website) and we will keep you updated.

'Path of Niners' review by Julian Cope from last year...but in case you missed it:

And if you need more of that 'Fall Of Empires' tidal wave, you know, the kind perpetrated by contemporary ensembles such as the Angelic Process and Nadja, then make sure you seize any opportunity to grab a copy of PATH OF NINERS, the latest work by Australia's mighty trio Grey Daturas. Finally securing its UK release on the venerable Bristol label Rocket Recordings, this new album is an outrageous tumult of sound, a raging Ragnarok of in-yer-face-ness, sounding as though Allah - suddenly alerted by the Christian God to the fact that we in the West don't believe in any of 'em - has thrown such a hissy fit that he's torn Britain in half and proceeded to hammer Europe into oblivion using a large piece of Scotland.

Rocket Recordings are proud to announce the release of the all new Collision Series. We celebrate Volume 1 of this series by coupling together two monolithic fuzzed transmissions by gods of heavy psychedelia, New Yorks White Hills and the UK legends The Heads.

The record survey’s both bands voyage towards a single lengthy Incursion, a whole side of burnout bliss. Each track will navigate the listener to explore Rocket flight paths until he/she is gasping for time in the air lock. White Hills ‘I Will Find Peace of Mind’ traces paths explored on previous Rocket favourite Heads on Fire (Launch 029), but this time the journey expands till it kicks the dust storms into a spacerock void. The slow pulse of pounding bass and pendulums of fuzz guitar swirl like a battle against unleashed elements, lost in the bottomless depths of the cosmos. Head for the wind, dark and frozen. Finally the whole piece concludes with a field recording gradually fading out into eternity. A parallel previously harvested by the freaks of Finland in the early 70’s. (Vocal Track)

With an all together heavier payload, The Heads ‘Camden Brain Slurry’ pilots further uncharted territory. From the off, the thrust of the entire band pummel the onboard circuits until the propulsion dials are teetering in the red, until it’s eventually time to bailout in a free fall haze of fuzz and feeback. Then the fun begins. In microbursts of repetitive transmission’s The Heads signal the ether before the engines are re-fired in hypnotic thrusts of distortion, eventually suffocating you until your brain screams for release. This is when we resume our journey with The Heads marching on in a Krautrock blitz until red eyes have taken them and you have to lower your landing gear. (Instrumental)

(It has also come to our attention that the labels on the new Heads/White Hills split 12 inch have been manufactured incorrectly, they don't seem to correlate with the titles on the back of the sleeve, I'm sure fans of both bands will recognise which tracks are which)

1 Apr 2009

There are many reasons why one purchases a particular album. Usually it is because of the music found in the grooves. Sometimes it is a recommendation from a friend…other times it might be the artwork or packaging. In the case of this album, Thunderbolt Pagoda’s S/T , for me it was purely a purchase based on its packaging. Upon going to Mutant Music’s website (http://www.mutantmusic.com) I purchased the album based on the packaging alone. Limited to 360 copies…housed in a box with silk screened cover and poster. At that time I could care less what the music was like…this was a great looking piece of art that I had to have! Once I received the album I was blown away by the music that rested in the grooves.

Thunderbolt Pagoda is one of those bands that is taking Cosmic Music into the 21st Century. The four tracks that grace the LP are fantastic space voyages that float in and out of punishing riffs and epic soundscapes that fly into the far reaches of the universe. This music is far-out! The opening track, Horizon on Fire, has an eastern twinge to it. The guitar work is reminiscent of a meeting between Erkin Koray and Syd Barrett during his Floyd years. Searing shards of guitar cut through the repetitive riff that the rhythm section so effortlessly raise and lower in intensity.

On the second track, The Watcher, the band kicks it off right away with a bombastic riff that quickly eases into a Krautrock-esque groove that is played with the intensity of street punks on a speed binge. Vocals are just where I like them…in the mix…layered with echo and reverb. Synths pop in and out adding a other worldliness to the proceedings. The rhythm section once again glues everything together with dynamics that are missing in so much music today. .Dynamics…what a wonderful thing!

Side Two, takes the trip even deeper with Release the Krakken Parts 1 & 2. Dark and foreboding…this is not music for the meek. The track begins with a mantra like montage of electronics and what appears to be guitar…summonsing the listener into a hypnotic state. Just when you have reached that meditative state the band kicks in full force with a monster of a riff. After being pummeled by the riff the track fades into deep space and floats away with another fantastic groove.

This album is spatial, heavy, and ominous. The stark artwork fits the music perfectly. I highly recommend this LP to anyone into heavy deep space music. Much thanks goes out to Chris Reeder for pointing me in the direction of this album. Without him I might have missed out on this masterpiece. Thanks Chris!